Legislator says reduced charge is appropriate in possession case Sen. Ann Rivers is praising a prosecutor’s decision to reduce charges in a marijuana-possession case against three Washington teens, saying it’s an example of how the criminal-justice system is still getting acquainted with marijuana-law changes that emerged from this year’s legislative... Read More...

Photo from 2012 when Clark County Sheriff K-9 Saver and Deputy Brian Ellithorpe testified in Olympia on my legislation. A Vancouver police dog who was in the midst of helping police apprehend a suspect died this week after being stabbed multiple times. The dog, Ike, was assisting police when suspect... Read More...

When Washington voters approved the sale of recreational marijuana in late 2012, they authorized a tightly regulated, well-taxed industry with a strong public-safety element. Sen. Ann Rivers said today’s Senate vote supporting House Bill 2136 will put the burgeoning market one step closer to meeting those expectations. The measure clarifies... Read More...

Since the 105-day regular legislative session ended in late April, Sen. Ann Rivers has spent countless hours driving between her southwest-Washington home and budget-negotiation meetings at the state Capitol. Today Rivers again traveled to Olympia – but this time she grabbed a sack lunch and hopped aboard a big yellow... Read More...

Dear Friends and Neighbors, We are a quarter of the way through the second special session and I wanted to take a few minutes to give you the view from the negotiation table. As part of the operating-budget discussions going on between our Senate majority and our counterparts in the... Read More...

The House Democrats’ latest state-budget proposal would not only create a new capital-gains tax but would also provide a 20 percent tax cut for pot smokers. Sen. Ann Rivers is challenging House budget leaders to drop the marijuana-tax cut, in the interests of speeding agreement on a state operating budget.... Read More...

Dear Friends and Neighbors, Rep. Brandon Vick and I are hosting town-hall meetings this Saturday in Battle Ground and Camas, with a focus on education funding. We would love the chance to see you and answer questions regarding the Senate’s budget, which would add $2.7 billion to current education-funding levels.... Read More...

In the days and years leading up to the recent passage of Senate Bill 5052 Sen. Ann Rivers was the subject of angry emails, death threats, even a published caricature depicting her with fangs – all over what critics said was her lack of concern for medical-marijuana patients. Rivers’ Cannabis... Read More...